RAID Is Not A Data Storage Backup!

I’ve been using my Drobo 8D thunderbolt 3 direct-attached storage (DAS) on my iMac Pro for over a year now with no issues. The performance is amazing allowing me to work directly off the DAS in real-time when using apps like Logic Pro or Final Cut Pro.

Drobo uses a proprietary form of a redundant array of independent disks (RAID) called BeyondRAID to support common RAID arrangements, provide disk redundancy, permit thin provisioning, allow for instant expansion, etc. If a single hard drive fails, I can easily swap it out for a new one and the array will automatically rebuild itself. However, what if the actual Drobo 8D unit fails? With Drobo supply shortages and such proprietary technology, it’s not like I can throw all the drives in a different storage server and everything will “work.” This is why RAID is not a backup.

For anyone who has a DAS or a network-attached storage (NAS), please remember to back up your files onto separate drives. I’m using a few 5 terabyte Western Digital My Passport Ultra for Mac (affiliate link) drives (exFAT partitions) to backup my Drobo data.

Now if the Drobo or more than one drive blows up, I still have a separate backup. 🙂

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